Veteran broadcaster Angela Rippon has disclosed that she fell victim to two frightening muggings in London, during which criminals threatened to "break her fingers" unless she surrendered her jewellery. The 81-year-old television personality, robbed on two separate occasions between 2000 and 2001, expressed fear of physical assault if she resisted the thieves' demands and acknowledged losing sentimental jewellery pieces after complying.
Violent Encounters in the Capital
Speaking on Vanessa Feltz's Channel 5 programme, Angela recounted being "kicked in the head" during one mugging after assuming a foetal position on the ground to protect her handbag. The presenter shared her experiences while debating whether confronting thieves is dangerous.
She explained: "I've been mugged on two occasions in London and on both of them, it was me and there were two men. I did fight back, but I didn't have an opportunity the first time at all. I ended up on the ground, curled up in the foetal position, thinking I might be safe there because it was so public, on a public pavement, that people would stop and help me."
Bystanders Filming Instead of Helping
Angela noted that instead of offering assistance, some onlookers "got their phones out to film," possibly because they were "afraid that they may get mugged themselves." The Strictly Come Dancing star continued: "They wanted my handbag, and because I was curled up, one of them kicked my head. I suddenly thought 'actually, having concussion is not worth it,' so I let them take my handbag. I then got up and chased them, hoping somebody might stick a foot out and stop them from running away. But they were like a pair of young gazelles and I was in heels—there was no contest really."
Second Mugging Involving Physical Threats
Describing the second incident, Angela revealed: "One of them had his hands around my throat and was threatening to break my fingers if I didn't let them take my rings. There is a point where you have to say, they're possessions—what is the point? The one thing I lost was a sentimental ring given to me by an aunt on my 21st birthday; it had very little value. I angst more over that than over the loss of my watch or diamond earrings."
She emphasised the importance of personal safety: "When you are on the receiving end of that kind of attack, you have to say, actually, they are possessions—just take what you want. Because you never know whether someone actually has a knife, and when they're bigger than you, they are going to wallop you. It's not pleasant; it's scary and it hurts, very scary."
Previously Shared Trauma
Angela had previously discussed how the second mugging, occurring near her west London home in 2001, left her shaken. She stated: "They were much bigger than me and you don't fight back. I said, 'Let me help you, please take it.' It was a terrifying experience. When I was mugged before, they pinched my handbag. This time it was much more violent and clearly planned. I got the impression they were waiting specifically for me. It was physically painful because they pulled my diamond stud earrings out with brute force and ripped my watch off."
Reflections on Television and Wokeism
While Angela first gained prominence in the 1970s, hosting programmes such as Top Gear, Come Dancing, and Antiques Roadshow, she has recently criticised television executives for "going woke." Speaking on GB News, she remarked: "I think the difference today is we have a plethora of television stations—an incredible variety and access to different kinds of programmes across hundreds of channels. We probably all think back with nostalgia to the 70s, when there were only a few channels. It used to be a watercooler moment when people would say, 'Hey, did you see that on the telly last night?' I don't think that heyday was any different; it was just that everybody watched the same programmes."
She added: "I hate the word, but we now all think there's too much examples of wokeism on television. Certainly, if you go on to some nostalgic channels and watch amazing programmes from the 70s like Fawlty Towers, we laugh. But there's a lot of stuff we were laughing at then that no television producer would put out now."
